IN ANNUAL WHITE CAPS CEREMONY, CIVIC ASSOCIATION PAYS TRIBUTE TO THOSE WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE VILLAGE
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June 20, 2016 -- At a ceremony held on June 12, Sea Cliff residents Barbara Sinenberg, Phil "Butch" Grella, and Joe Roman were each presented with a White Cap Award, the Sea Cliff Civic Association’s most prestigious honor, bestowed each year upon individuals, groups or organizations that have demonstrated repeated outstanding volunteer service to the Sea Cliff community. Bill and Anita Long, owners of the Metropolitan Bistro, hosted the event and generously contributed an extensive and delicious assortment of hors d'oeurves for the occasion.
“Every single one of you should get an award," said Civic Association President Ann DiPietro addressing the audience. "All of Sea Cliff should get an award because all of our citizens do so much to make this the wonderful place it is." "But among us, a few stand out," she continued, "and those few have received White Cap Awards." Past White Cap honorees Peggie Como and Terry Sciubba then offered their nomination for this year's award - Barbara Sinenberg. A resident since 1992, Ms. Sinenberg has served the village in a variety of ways, said Ms. Sciubba. Among other contributions, she has been a two-term PTA president, an active member of the Landmarks Association (serving as a docent for the group's annual house tour in that role), a member of the Assessment Review Commission, and has volunteered to help out with the Mutual Concerns Christmas Day dinner for the past 12 years. "With her involvement in the community," said Ms. Sciubba, "Barbara has earned the respect of those with whom she serves." Life long village resident Phil "Butch" Grella has served the community as both a volunteer and an employee, said former White Cap award winner John Reali in his nomination speech. Mr. Grella was a coach in the Sea Cliff Baseball League and served as fire chief for seven terms during part of which time he was president of the Nassau County Fire Chiefs Association. A Marine Corps veteran, he currently serves as Commandant of the Dan Daly Globe and Anchor Detachment of Glen Cove. Mr. Grella began working at the Department of Public Works in 1964 and worked his way up the ladder to become Superintendent of Public Works in 1994. In that role, Mr. Reali explained, he had made it a priority to provide outstanding service while saving taxpayers money. Paul Marchese nominated Joe Roman whom he described as someone always willing to go out of his way to help others. "I never knew what motivated him -- he just likes to help people -- it's just something inside of him," he said. "He gets a lot of satisfaction out of it." After telling of several instances of Mr. Roman's helpfulness, he spoke of his work on behalf of the Sea Cliff Sailing Club, a summertime program that has taught sailing skills to hundreds and hundreds of Sea Cliff youth over the past several decades, and which he has captained since club founder Ward Bell stepped down from that role 20 years ago. In addition to recognizing community members who have gone above and beyond volunteering their time and energy to making Sea Cliff what it is, the Sea Cliff Civic Association too has been a pillar of the community for decades sponsoring events around the year. They include: the Ice Cream Social at Spooky Park, the Newcomers Reception, the Progressive Dinner, the Cider Social, the Headless Park Turkey Hunt, the Scrooge Stroll, the Meet the Candidates for Village Board Forum, the Village-wide Garage Sale, the Memorial Day Breakfast, the Flag Day Concert at Clifton Park, the Sunset Serenade Concert Series, the Fourth of July Declaration of Independence reading, Mid-summer Movie Madness, and the James Joyce Jaunt. BACK TO WEEKLY |
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